Swedish Ambassador to Seoul Jakob Hallgren gives a welcome speech at the launching event for the South Korea-Sweden Green Transition Alliance, held in his residence in Seoul on May 13, 2021. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, May 13 (Korea Bizwire) — Over a dozen Swedish companies doing business in South Korea launched a “green” alliance Thursday to commit themselves to a set of carbon-reducing goals in support of Seoul’s green policy drive.
The South Korea-Sweden Green Transition Alliance brings together 13 Swedish companies, including furniture giant IKEA, to take part in the process of achieving sustainable growth and carbon neutrality in Korea over the next decades, the Swedish Embassy in Seoul said.
“Our own Swedish experience shows that green growth and innovation is a winning strategy, both for the climate and wallet,” Swedish Ambassador to Seoul Jakob Hallgren said at the launching event.
“The Green Transition Alliance wants to inspire, I believe, bold action to bring forward South Korea’s target to become carbon neutral by 2050, or maybe hopefully before,” he said.
South Korea has stepped up its green policy campaign in recent years, as President Moon Jae-in vowed to further raise the carbon emission reduction target and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
Seoul is also due to host a multilateral summit, named the Partnering for Green Growth and the Global Goals (P4G), from May 30-31.
At the launching ceremony, the heads of the 13 companies, along with the Swedish embassy and the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Korea, signed a statement outlining their commitments, with a primary focus on reducing carbon emissions by up to 50 percent by around 2030.
Yoo Yeon-chul, South Korea’s ambassador for climate change who also attended the event, expressed hope that this “timely initiative” will serve to further solidify the partnership between the two countries.
(Yonhap)
